1. Field of the Invention
The field of the present invention relates to frame quilting machines which are large table-like structures used to sew patterns into large textile items; in particular bedspreads and quilts. The field of the present invention also relates to industrial sewing machine apparatus and processes used to sew patterns and stitching into large fabrics, which sewing operation is not easily performed on conventional sewing machine. The field of the present invention also relates to machines which include a method of duplicating a selected pattern over an entire bedspread or quilt. Finally, the field of the present invention relates to computer controlled quilting machines wherein the stitching pattern of the sewing machine head and the table movement of the frame relative to the sewing machine head are both controlled by computers or process controllers.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Industrial sewing machine operations are known in the prior art. Patterns and stitching into fabrics is commonly performed on industrial sewing machines. The operator hand guides the fabric between the needle and the sewing machine table and the pattern is sewn into the fabric. This process is practical for small pieces of fabric and is commonly done on piece goods such as garments. When handling larger pieces of fabric such as a roll of fabric, a metnod known in the prior art is roll to roll sewing. The sewing machine head is located along an X-axis and the material is unwound from a roll and caused to move transverse to the sewing machine head such that the fabric moves along a Y-axis. The sewing machine sews a stitch into the large fabric as the head moving along the X-axis and the fabric moving along the Y-axis intersect each other. The fabric is then wound onto a second receiving roll.
When sewing a very large piece of fabric such as a bedspread or quilt, a frame quilting machine is used. The frame quilting machine comprises a large frame, usually made of metal, onto which the fabric to be sewn is spread. Commonly, the pattern is sewn by a sewing machine guided by a computer into which a predetermined pattern has been programmed. The fabric remains stationary on the frame and the sewing machine head moves along the fabric and stitches in the predetermined pattern.
The current method for computer programmable quilting patterns uses a digitizer/cursor board with a method of plotting patterns. It is also used in the design of patterns and is accomplished on a scaled down version of the patterns. Plotting is accomplished using a mouse for indexing points on an XY axis. The points are programmed and followed through use of the computer. The prior art uses standard patterns which are preprogrammed into the computer and selected individualized patterns which are created as the bedspread or quilt is on the machine.
A major problem with all prior art embodiments is that the stitching function of the sewing machine needle and the frame table movement in the X and Y directions are controlled by a single computer. As a result, when it becomes necessary to program or reprogram the machine for a new stitch or pattern, or to make modifications in the existing stitch or pattern, all of the movements in the stitch function and table movement function must be reprogrammed. This results in an enormous amount of work in that thousands of combined stitch and movement operations must be reprogrammed and the effort takes many hours and sometimes days.
The inventors have previously filed three patent applications which are presently co-pending. These patent applications are as follows:
1. Patent application Ser. No. 07/220,734 filed 07/18/88 for "Automatic Quilting Machine For Specialized Quilting Of Patterns Which Can Be Controlled By A Remote Joy Stick And Monitored On A Video Screen".
2. Patent application Ser. No. 07/247,696 filed 09/22/88 for "Automatic Quilting Machine For Specialized Quilting Of Patterns Which Can Be Controlled By A Remote Joystick And Monitored On A Video Screen Including Pattern Duplication Through A Reprogrammable Computer".
3. Patent application Ser. No. 07/336,007 filed 04/10/89 for "Automatic Quilting Machine For Specialized Quilting Of Patterns Which Can Be Created By A Scanner Or On A Video Screen Utilizing Computer Graphics In Conjunction With A Reprogrammable Computer Which Includes Computer Aided Design".
The prior art known to the inventors is discussed in the above three referenced patent applications. None of this prior art discloses the concept of separate computers or process controllers to control the sewing machine functions and the frame table movements so that each can be independently programmed or reprogrammed to make adjustments or changes in either the stitch or accessory functions such as trim, etc. or in the table movement in the X and/or Y direction.
Therefore, there is a significant need for a system which selectively breaks down the the three functions of sewing machine stitch pattern, X movement and Y movement into individualized computer program modes so that reprogramming of one element does not require reprogramming the entire system.